Wake up you 'Moby Dicks'

Madam – Your correspondent John Drennan (Sunday Independent, March 9, 2014) tells us that "the Moby Dicks", those angry at the party political sphere and thinking of voting for the independents and Sinn Fein, are a growing powerhouse in Irish politics.

The Irish people, both north and south, need to get real about Sinn Fein. The Moby Dicks must begin to realise that, rather than being regarded as shrewd and discerning in backing Sinn Fein, they will ultimately find themselves short-changed.

There is very little of substance to Sinn Fein. It is essentially a propaganda-based party whose primary purpose is to create an impression of having winning arguments. Most of their arguments wouldn't stand the test of any rigorous questioning.

They would certainly not stack up in a situation where they find themselves in government.

But due to the fact that they are very good at propaganda, where they get free rein to do and say as they like, they come out shining as bright lights. Sinn Fein's purpose initially was to act as the cheerleaders of the IRA.

In the North, they excelled at doing this during our recent Troubles because they had the muscle of the IRA behind them.

They tended to win very few arguments, but believed that they won them all because they had silenced large sections of society.

They chiselled away at the SDLP, attacking personnel, homes and cars in what was nothing short of organised evil. In the end, however, SDLP arguments won the day, without so much as an embarrassed grin from Sinn Fein.

They're having the same effect on the South. They are still telling us that they won all the arguments on the economy. They always "win" all the arguments and the Moby Dicks need to understand that, just as in the North, politicians tend to play down their threat unconsciously because they don't play by the rules.

In short, it really is time that the Moby Dicks realised that they're only being "Dopey Dicks" when they support Sinn Fein.